There is a whole world of dessert options beyond traditional tiered cakes to explore for your wedding. Dessert bars in particular offer long-term snacking compared to active stations like the S’mores, Ice Cream Sundae, and Churro stations that we provide. These dessert bars are perfect for couples who want to keep their guests on the dance floor and want to appeal to the largest crowd. Check out these mouth-watering options below for your own sweet, sweet inspiration!

Gipe Photography

Dessert trends have been pointing away from classic tiered cakes, with their overly sweet or inaccurate amount issues, and towards experimenting with smaller portions or varieties of treats as options for guests.

Anastasya Photography

Donuts, in particular over the last few years, have rocketed off the charts in popularity!

Honestly, who can resist fried dough covered in sugar?

Gipe Photography

Cupcakes offer options for your guests’ special dietary needs as well!

Instead of ordering one layer of cake hoping and worrying about anybody’s allergy restrictions, ordering cupcakes allow for specific numbers of different flavors to please everyone.

Anastasya Photography

Your favorite treats to go–such as cookies, brownies, lemon bars, and any other sugary concoction are perfect for guests to snag from a dessert station on their way to the dance floor.

Krissel Rivas Photography

Snag your favorite candies in bulk to share with your guests. They can make little to-go bags of their favorites to take home. A healthier version that we’ve seen of this dessert station option is a trail mix station!

Acqua Photo

Choose your favorite treats and go wild! We love seeing couples get creative with their choices.

Gipe Photography

Just ask our coordinators for ideas on how best to display all of your treats!

Leo Carrillo Ranch Coordinated, Managed, and Catered by Personal Touch Dining.

Francis Ralph Potograpiya

Thanks to all the proud Dads who have graced our historic halls with their endless support and devotion.

Francis Ralph Potograpiya

We hope you feel appreciated by all of us at Leo Carrillo Ranch, and we wish you all a fantastic Father’s Day!

Erika was such a pleasure to work with! She couldn’t get enough of our rustic charm, and we don’t blame her for wanting to live in our historic Hacienda forever. Getting ready in those rooms will make you feel magically transported to a golden moment in time.

From the bottom of our hearts, we’re so thrilled that Erika’s special day here at the Ranch was everything she dreamed of. It’s thanks to the tiny extra effort of leaving a review that the word gets out about all of the soul we put into each event.

Check out the glowing review she left for us below!

Explore Your Budget

An overall budget will help steer you towards the type of venues available. It’s best to balance the budget with the cost of the venue and associated services. Consider all party costs – not just the venue rental. That includes entertainment, food and beverage, logistics rental, and staffing. Determine an overall budget before beginning a search for possible venues.

Pick The Date

When choosing a holiday party venue, the event date is a key factor. This means that it is imperative to book the event as early as possible before your preferred date fills up. Waiting too long to reserve a date may cause a company to settle for a venue that isn’t at the top of your list. If you’re flexible about the date, however, you may find more options available.

Companies like to get holiday parties on the calendar well before the holidays – especially before their employees start taking off for holiday vacations. In years past, many companies preferred to host parties on either the first or second Friday or Saturday in December. This trend is changing, however, with holiday parties extending well into January of the following year.

Tailor-Fit Your Party To Your Needs

Before putting any firm decisions in place, think about what kind of party fits the company best. What do people want? Formal or a more casual event? Is an indoor party the way to go, or do people like an outside option? Are you hosting a dancing crowd or a more relaxed group? Getting all these answers will help your party take shape quickly, allowing you to move forward easily.

Pre-defined options also help narrow the focus. This way, you can take polls faster while limiting the number of off-the-wall suggestions. Not all participants will get their first choice, but everyone will be on board if you come up with a popular solution.

Elevate The Theme with Decor and Rentals

Some venues are truly full service, like our Ranch; others are more bare-bones. Thus, it is helpful to understand what the venue supplies and what you need to source yourself. Yes, the venue probably has tables and chairs (although these may need to be rented, too), but what about decorations? Do you need to supply or rent these yourself, or can the venue help line everything up? Don’t forget audio/video needs; will you need to rent a computer, projector, screen, or even a microphone and speakers? If the event is outdoors, what about heat lamps? (Even San Diego can get chilly in December.)

Imbibe And Dine!

A bad dining experience might be the only thing your coworkers remember about your holiday party if your food choices flop. When reviewing possible venues, find out which food and drink options are available. According to our experts, these are the questions to ask: Does the venue have on-site food services, complete with kitchen and servers? Or does a catering service need to be brought in? Alcohol will probably be part of the mix, and most venues will provide it, but how much does it cost? Will the company offer an open bar, or is a cash bar more appropriate for your budget?

Food and beverage costs can account for a fair percentage of your party expenditures. Make sure to include this on your list when you’re evaluating venues. It will help to know whether the venue provides these services (and at what cost) or whether you need to use a separate caterer.

How To Entertain The Masses

You’ve got the food, decorations, and a stunning venue, but it’s awfully quiet… Jazz up the party with some music, either in the background or upfront for dancing. Take into consideration that not all venues can accommodate all types of entertainment. A single DJ with all his equipment only takes up ten square feet of space. However, booking an eight-piece party band will require much more.

Looking for a little something extra? For more family-oriented parties, try booking magicians or caricaturists! Face painters will be sure to delight kids of all ages! For the adults, offer casino games or a photo booth. Outdoor events are perfect for late night lawn games. Just check with the venue that they can accommodate the entertainment selected.

If this all seems a little overwhelming, reach out to our talented coordination team!

With a few simple questions answered, we’ll take care of everything. Your party planning experience will be a breeze, and your coworkers will marvel at how you pulled it off with such ease.

Have you heard about Personal Touch Dining‘s exciting new party boxes?

Finally, a safe and easy solution to celebrate together!

We’ve picked out some of our favorites below, but for the full menu, click here!

Happy Hour Box:

Grazing

Picnic Box:

Belated BBQ

Party Apart Box:

South Of The Border

Holiday Boxes:

Greater Gobble

Kits:

Give Them S’ mores!

Don’t Forget the Extra Goodies!

Interested?

This is only a fraction of the full menu!!

Check out the Personal Touch Dining blog for all the details about this safe party solution!

Thanks to True Photography for all of these incredible detail shots of the Party on The Go Boxes!

Welcome to the Family, Old Rancho!!

We’re thrilled to share that we’re partnering with The Old Rancho for weddings and events, starting May 2021!

This gorgeous property, built in the 1840s, is San Diego North County’s oldest privately-owned venue.

Dive into its intimate “Private Villa” atmosphere with classically stunning Spanish architecture and lush natural beauty. This charming ranch home has retained its historic charm in the country-like setting while only minutes from the freeway, downtown, and the beach. Just minutes away from our beloved Leo Carrillo Ranch, this romantic retreat offers a private outdoor ceremony space, as well as outdoor dining in their secluded garden. This space is a haven, sequestered in the heart of Carlsbad, perfect for anyone looking for their special event to be a unique and magical experience.

If you are looking for a one-of-a-kind setting for your wedding or special event, we invite you to join us at The Old Rancho!

Learn about the Old Rancho’s history, schedule a site visit, and see their gallery by clicking HERE! 

It’s hard to believe that the talented folks at Personal Touch Dining have been behind the scenes, successfully making the magic happen at all our special events, for five years already!

David Manning Photographer

In honor of Leo Carrillo’s generous spirit and love of celebration, Personal Touch Dining has helped us host countless weddings, holiday celebrations, and community events. All the while, they strive to embody the energy that we tirelessly work to keep alive here at the Leo Carrillo Ranch.

With each excited client under their wing, they take care to treat every event like they were hosting their own family. Their Catering, Event Coordination, and Venue Management skills are all above and beyond what is to be expected from a typical catering company. Incredibly talented, and always cheerful, the Personal Touch Dining staff work miracles on our grounds whenever they are here.

We’ve grown so much as a team while working with them, and our Ranch has grown as well! Thanks to their efforts, our beloved Ranch recieves the extra attention needed to maintain this enormous historic park.

We love working with them and hope our partnership continues for many years to come!

Madeline Barr Photography

Check out our original blog post about the beginning of our beautiful partnership by clicking the link below!

Personal Touch Dining at Leo Carrillo Ranch

Our Coordination Team is small but mighty!

Planning and coordinating weddings takes a sharp mind and a whole lot of heart.

Kendra and Darcie know our Ranch inside and out, and with years of experience between them, no event challenge is too big.

Thanks for taking the time to send in this review, Joe!

Our dynamic duo is thrilled that they were able to make your special day come together.

Our Ranch is overflowing with unique and gorgeous locations that are perfect for must-have moments!

Tucked away between the Hacienda Courtyard and the Washhouse Patio, where we have our ceremonies, there’s a quiet garden featuring charming original architecture and an array of natural beauty.

Singler Photography

Perfect for photographers to grab multiple angles and quick-action approach shots, this secret location is ideal for the couple who want as much detail of this must-have moment recorded.

Singler Photography

Just through the gate seen in the pictures before, classic desert foliage unique to our Ranch’s rustic vibe frames the front of our stunning Hacienda.

Madeline Barr Photography

Through the front entry to the Hacienda, the courtyard hosts a spectacular stone arch draped in vibrant burgundy bougainvillea.

A perfect spot for those with lots of pinks and warm tones to their overall event motif!

Singler Photography

Crazy for more wild desert beauty? On the way to the historic Caretaker’s Cottage, check out the enormous Blue Agave plants on the right!

These plants create the most stunning boho backdrop for a First Look.

Joe & Kathrina Photography

It’s nearly impossible to miss our lovely restored Stables.

This space has two sides that are shaded and have lots of space for photographers to find those dramatic angles.

Phil Chester Photography

On the Stable’s side closest to the visitor’s Center, this intimate hall is striking and perfect for an artsy couple with a love of bright colors and a right eye for contrast!

(We like to imagine you could almost pass this off as a private villa on the cliffs of Greece.)

Madeline Barr Photography

There are countless locations around the Ranch for your perfect First Look!

No matter where you turn, gorgeous rustic architecture, natural wild desert beauty, and opportunities for must-have moments are all around!

We’ve been pretty vocal about how much we live for this defining moment during our weddings here at Leo Carrillo Ranch.

Singler Photography

There’s a certain magic that happens at the end of each ceremony that we wish we could bottle and share with the world.

Davin Lindwall Photography

After the happy couple says their vows, a new tension starts to build.

Madeline Barr Photography

They have their Big Kiss, everyone cheers, they turn to the crowd…

Joseph McCalment Photo & Video

And BAM!!

Mike Thezier Photography

Striking everyone in the crowd, that indescribable tidal wave of incandescent bliss pours out of the faces of the newlyweds as they walk back down the aisle, hand in hand.

David Manning Photographer

It’s one of our favorite parts of our Special Events and keeps us doing what we love most: making your dream event come to life.

Madeline Barr Photography

So, Reach Out to us!

See what our talented Coordination Team can do to make “The Glow” happen for you!